Pens lose 3-2 to Toronto in overtime (27-Dec-2005)
The Penguins lose their fourth straight in the Therrien era with a 3-2 overtime loss to Toronto in front of a standing room sellout crowd of 17,132 at Mellon Arena.

Pittsburgh got a rare game-opening goal on the power play at 7:29 of the second period. Sergei Gonchar ripped a shot which was tipped by John LeClair and then by Mark Recchi. Less than a minute later Marc-Andre Fleury's clearance attempt was intercepted by Mats Sundin who put a shot on net. The rebound came to Alexander Khavanov who put the puck into the open net. Mats Sundin made it 2-1 Toronto with a power play goal with 38 seconds to go in the second.

The lone goal of the third was scored by Michel Ouellet who took a cross-crease pass from a kneeling Sidney Crosby and banged it home making it two all. The Pens had a golden opportunity to grab a lead when three of the five healthy Toronto defensemen were all in the box at the same time. Pittsburgh failed to convert which lead to the game heading into overtime. A wide open Tomas Kaberle netted the game-winner at the 2:26 mark to send the many Leafs fans in attendance home happy...

Mario out 10-14 days with irregular heartbeat (19-Dec-2005)
GM Craig Patrick announced that Mario Lemieux will be out of the line-up for 10-14 days while he undergoes an off-ice workout regimen and will then be re-evaluated due to his irregular heartbeat condition. For more, check out http://www.pittsburghpenguins.com/team/features/arts/1540.0.php.

Pens fall again 4-3 to Buffalo (17-Dec-2005)
For the second straight game, Pittsburgh loses to Buffalo 4-3. The Pens found themselves down by two goals 6:46 into the game. Michel Therrien called a timeout and unleashed an expletive-filled tirade on the bench. Sidney Crosby responded with his 14th of the season at 10:50. The Sabres got power play goals at 18:15 of the first and then at 15:34 of the second which made the score 4-1 after two periods of play. The Pens made it interesting with goals from Michel Ouellet and Tomas Surovy in the third to cut the lead to one. Pittsburgh almost got the game-tyer from Surovy with Jocelyn Thibault pulled but Martin Biron made a superb ice-level glove save with 30 seconds to go.

Mario Lemieux sat out with a recurrence of his heart problem.

Mark Recchi and Dick Tarnstrom were not on the bench for the third period.

Pens lose 4-3 in overtime to Buffalo (16-Dec-2005)
The Penguins lose in overtime 4-3 to Buffalo in Michel Therrien's debut as Pittsburgh head coach. After a scoreless first, the teams combined for five in the second with the Sabres ending the period up 3-2. Ziggy Palffy scored the lone goal of the third with 2:17 to go. The goal was initially not called but after a lengthy video review was counted. Chris Drury netted a rebound power play goal at 1:32 of overtime for the game-winner. Michel Ouellet scored his first NHL goal at 3:28 of the second on the power play. Ryan Malone also scored a power play goal at 17:11 of the second. Attendance was 16,648 at Mellon Arena.

Roy and Lemieux off of IR (16-Dec-2005)
Andre Roy and Mario Lemieux have been taken off the injured reserve list. In order to make room, Ryan Vandenbussche has been placed on waivers.

Ziggy Palffy is also expected to return tonight. Crosby will center Lemieux and Palffy on the top line.

Pens fire Olczyk, Mullen, Hillier, Clifford, and Welday (15-Dec-2005)
The Penguins have fired head coach Ed Olczyk, assistants Joe Mullen and Randy Hillier, goaltending coach Shane Clifford, and strength and conditioning coach John Welday. Olczyk will remain with the organization in another capacity.

Michel Therrien will take over as head coach along with assistant coach Mike Yeo, goaltending coach Gilles Lefebvre and strength coach Stephane Dube. Eddie Johnston will temporarily be Therrien's other assistant coach until a permanent coach can be hired.

"Save our Pens!" Rally - Friday, 6:00pm @ Mellon Arena (14-Dec-2005)
If you'd like to show your support for the Penguins remaining in Pittsburgh and for a new arena being built for Pittsburgh, there will be a gathering of fans outside of Mellon Arena at 6:00pm on Friday before the game against the Sabres.

Fans should gather outside the box office gate and the PensStation store on Mario Lemieux Boulevard. If you are planning on attending, please send an e-mail to savethepens@hotmail.com.

Pens blanked by Blues 3-0 (13-Dec-2005)
The Penguins get outshot 42-21 and are shutout by St. Louis 3-0 in front of 14,336 at Savvis Center. Marc-Andre Fleury had another big game in net with a 39 save performance that earned him the game's second star. Keith Tkachuk, on a 3-on-1, one-timed the eventual game-winner past Fleury at the 56 second mark of the second period. Jamal Mayers made it 2-0 with a shorthander that beat Fleury five-hole at 14:52 of the third. Doug Weight closed out the scoring with an empty-netter with 50 seconds to go in the game.

Pens fall 3-1 to Red Wings (12-Dec-2005)
The Penguins are outshot 39-17 and lose 3-1 to Detroit in front of 20,066 at Joe Louis Arena. The Red Wings got a power play goal from Henrik Zetterberg at 10:44 of the first, a Zetterberg shorthanded breakaway goal at 16:10 of the second and a Nicklas Lidstrom power play goal at 6:29 of the third. Mark Recchi broke Chris Osgood's shutout bid with 29 seconds to go in the game. Marc-Andre Fleury was outstanding with a 36 save performance.

Lemieux on IR; Surovy recalled (12-Dec-2005)
Mario Lemieux has been placed on the injured reserve list with his irregular heartbeat condition. Tomas Surovy has been recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Pens snap streaks with 4-3 win over Colorado (10-Dec-2005)
The Penguins break their six game losing streak and beat the Avalanche for the first time ever on home ice with a 4-3 victory in front of 16,677 at Mellon Arena. Mark Recchi, Dick Tarnstrom, Eric Christensen and Maxime Talbot scored for the Pens. Marc-Andre Fleury made 23 stops for his first home victory of the season.

Pens blanked 5-0 by Wild (8-Dec-2005)
Minnesota got the game-winner 1:04 into the first period and cruise to a 5-0 win over the Penguins in front of 14,627 at Mellon Arena. Pittsburgh has now lost six games in a row.

Lemieux released from hospital (8-Dec-2005)
Mario Lemieux has been released from the hospital. He's been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation (http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4451), a condition which is treatable with medication. No timetable has been set for his return to the team.

Pens lose 3-2 to Calgary (3-Dec-2005)
The Penguins drop their fifth game in a row as they fall 3-2 to Calgary. Marcus Nilson "scored" the game's first goal at 9:44 of the first. Replays were inconclusive on whether the puck actually crossed the goal line. Sidney Crosby tied the game at one with his 13th of the season at 8:12 of the second on a nice backhander. Daymond Langkow scored twice before the four minute mark of the third to make it 3-1 Flames. Ryan VandenBussche closed out the scoring with his first goal as a Penguin.

Pens send Caron to WBS (3-Dec-2005)
Sebastien Caron cleared waivers and has been assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Pens lose fourth straight with 2-1 defeat against Rangers (1-Dec-2005)
Pittsburgh loses 2-1 to the Rangers in a game in which all of the goals were scored by defensemen. Maxim Kondratiev got his first NHL goal during the end of a power play at 7:52 of the first period. The shot deflected off of two Penguins before beating goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. Ryan Whitney countered with his first NHL goal at 1:54 of the second with a strong wrist shot. Marek Malik got the eventual game-winner at 6:31 of the second.

Ziggy Palffy did not return for the third period with a reported groin injury.